Health Fairs In The Schools

By Laurie Borst

Jill Patterson, Chartwells resident dietitian, has organized the first elementary school health fairs for Newtown Schools. The first fair was held on April 10 at Sandy Hook School.

“Each school decides what activities they want to use, and which grade levels will participate,” Ms Patterson explained. Ms Patterson worked with the physical education teachers to develop the activities.

At Sandy Hook School, first and second graders participated. Five stations were set up with students rotating through them in small groups. Parent volunteers helped staff the stations.

One station was based on the game Twister. Instead of colors, pictures of bread, milk, apples, and steaks were placed on the mat. This helped reinforce the food groups for the youngsters. Students played the game, placing their right foot on apple, left hand on steak.

At another station, students learn about the skeletal system. While music played, students limboed under a bar, ran to a pile of plastic bones where one was selected, then found where to place that bone on a large drawing of the body.

A station was set up on the stage where school nurse Sally Cox talked to the children about germs and the importance of hand washing. To illustrate the necessity of staying clean, students took turns placing their hands on a stuffed bear that had been sprinkled with powder.

The powder represented germs. The student would place his/her hands under an ultraviolet light and the powder would glow. The student would then clean her hands with a sanitary wipe and place her hands under the UV light again, hopefully showing most of the powder removed.

The fourth station showed a video, Eat Smart. The video gave students information about healthy eating and the need to exercise. During the video, Spotted Meat-a-potamus and Sunny Sunrise-a-saurus, two Chartwells characters, enter the room. Along with Lillian Bittman, a parent volunteer, the three led the children through a dance the video presented.

The two characters were played by high school volunteers Jordyn Good and Jen Brewer.

The fifth station was “5-A-Day,” providing the children with information on getting five servings of fruits and vegetables every day. Parent volunteers Carol Schuman and Janet Begamy gave students clues about fruits and vegetables and the children guessed which ones were being described.

SHS students spent about 50 minutes going through the stations. Then another group would take a turn participating in the activities.

Both Head O’ Meadow and Middle Gate Schools planned events for the week of April 23–27. Hawley School has two dates for its health fair. Some students will attend on April 30 and others on May 9.

Newtown High School will hold its health fair on May 17. The high school has put on a health fair for a number of years.